Showing my age (again)

[alistair64]

Hi All
Just checked into a Travelodge near Eastbourne on my way down to France for a short break.
The guy at reception rides an R6, a lovely 2002 example, so we chatted for some time.
Of course I told him about reaching the final stages of a bike restoration and he asked what bike it was.
The guy was probably in his late twenties at a guess, but when I announce 'oh, it's probably before your time and you won't know it', I still hoped he would.
'It's an RD350 Powervalve', says I, but the blank expression said it all.
'What cc is it?' says he.
'It's a 350 2-stroke. It wouldn't be allowed these days due to emission laws' says I. 'But I grew up on these sort of bikes. They come from a time when we had to do maintenance on bikes ourselves, because they weren't as reliable as they are now.' 
I got the normal response from his generation that he wouldn't have a clue even how to change a spark plug, which I told him I found a great shame.

The point of this post is that I still can't accept that younger bikers have never heard of our bikes. This is the second time it has happened with strangers in the space of a couple of weeks 
Does anyone else get disheartened by similar experiences?
The problem here is that although I'm 52 I still feel 25 years younger, and experiences like this don't help!

[headcoats]

A they say youth is wasted on the young LOL

[Ozhammer]

I know exactly what you mean Al, we went to a Japanese classic show & shine and my boss's son who is 24 came along on his MT-07. We had to give him a crash course on all the iconic machines that were there CB750, CBX GT750, my LC etc. he didn't even understand the difference between a 2 stroke and a four!

This is all probably a consequence of modern bikes just being plug and play, there is little need for fettling by owners, who just jump on and go (no need to warm it up to avoid cold seizures or the like). Most bikes these days don't even have a centre stand and there are probably therefore many newer riders who don't even know how to adjust their chains!

One of the key reasons that I sold my ZX6R was that I wanted something more involving and that had real world performance that I could access readily, rather than something that I was only scratching the surface of.

Hopefully we managed to sow some seeds in the mind of our young apprentice on Sunday and he was certainly blown away by some of the bikes on show. After riding behind a couple of old 2 strokes for a few hours, hopefully he has become addicted! 😉

Rgds
Ozhammer

[markhoopy]

I've had my grandson Owen on bikes since he was four - he loved the TY80, knows the difference between two and four stroke engines, has seen the LCs we've bought and sold, and has got his hands dirty helping put the 443 together too. I've told him he can use it once he's passed his test but he still has eighteen months to go before he's old enough to get a licence so he'll have to be patient for now.
The youth of today just need a little guidance that's all

[Eyrey1]

Sept 5, 2016 23:53:59 GMT 1 markhoopy said:

I've had my grandson Owen on bikes since he was four - he loved the TY80, knows the difference between two and four stroke engines, has seen the LCs we've bought and sold, and has got his hands dirty helping put the 443 together too. I've told him he can use it once he's passed his test but he still has eighteen months to go before he's old enough to get a licence so he'll have to be patient for now.
The youth of today just need a little guidance that's all

he wont be able to ride that until he is 24 or 25 with the new laws mark i dont think

[Delbert]

What I find quite worrying is some of the younger generation that ride high powered sports bikes or any bike come to that and have no idea about maintenance, they could be riding down the road with no clue something is wrong or about to fall off ..
I've seen it first hand with lad on a tl 1000 where the front wheel bearings were absolutely shot yet had been riding it like he stole it!

[dusty350]

Hi
The most disheartening thing is when you go to a bike shop, to buy plugs or oil, and the guys working there don't know what an Lc /ypvs/Kr1 etc is
Pulled up at a Suzuki main dealer a few years ago on a Tzr 1kt with a 350 pv engine fitted, in Cadbury Boost livery. Came out with my oil to find 2 sales guys stood staring at the bike. No idea about Tzr's, pv's or the Boost paint job !!
Even more worrying is the fact that most "young adults" don't realise, or care, our fathers and grandfathers fought 2 world wars for us !!
I have no interest in old Brit bikes, but I still grew up knowing a bit about them, and could certainly have a conversation about them with an owner. Sign of the times I spose.

Dusty

Ps. Just imagine how shocked that young R6 owner would feel when when he finds your "old" Lc is worth a lot more than his modern superbike !!!

[beardy]

totally understand and agree with above. the number of bikes i see riding around with their chains just waiting to come off. i offered to tighten the chain on a guys bike and he declined and said he`d book it in to the dealers..uhh.

[Norbo]

LOL Personally i have never had this but i expect if i got chatting to younger bikers a lot would be just the same

[lcyoungboy]

I fully agree what yous are saying..most young uns today haven't a clue when it comes to spinning the spanners..it all depends on how you were brought up I think..my dad was always into bikes..and had lots of 2strokes..last big 1 being an rd500..I remember lots of times being in the garage as a kid..it was always in bits and lots of times pushing him up the road ha.
It broke his heart in the end and sold it for £500 back in 96-98..if only he knew..only 2 stroke he has now is a little 100.
Nevertheless it rubbed off me and I've 2 lcs now and a dt..and I'm 25..I love 2strokes...

[lolly]

but to be fair ; if someone 20 years older than me ( I am 53) started to talk to me about old British bikes I would have a vague look on my face 

[shaunthe2nd]

I tried chatting to some young ladies about 2-strokes, and they lost interest and wandered off. I thought it must be me they found boring but obviously not! Phew.
Lol.

[midlifecrisisrd]

It's not just young us

Guy that lives behind me was taking his vfr1200 to a dealer to change the front pads

Steve

[Yogi]

Sad thing is these kids will never know or have the fun we did back then when it was a pleasure to ride
Nor will they feel the same nostalgia as us in the future
Different world now with speed cameras and such
There loss., You don't know man,you wasn't there

[copper99]

Sept 6, 2016 17:46:14 GMT 1 midlifecrisisrd said:

It's not just young us

Guy that lives behind me was taking his vfr1200 to a dealer to change the front pads

Steve

I can beat that, a friend of my brothers was going to take his bike to the dealers to have....the rear set adjusted..which consisted of slackening 1 allen screw and rotating the peg on an eccentric adjuster..didnt even have to unbolt anything!


I guess, people of our age HAD to work on our bikes to keep them reliable/in fettle and the bikes were designed by the factory with the expectation they would largely be worked on by the home mechanic, nowadays its a case of book it in once a year and have a latte in the dealers cafe whilst the oil is changed and cough up the ££ for the experience.. Thats the "norm" nowadays eh?!

[yazza54]

Sept 6, 2016 11:06:26 GMT 1 lcyoungboy said:

I fully agree what yous are saying..most young uns today haven't a clue when it comes to spinning the spanners..it all depends on how you were brought up I think..my dad was always into bikes..and had lots of 2strokes..last big 1 being an rd500..I remember lots of times being in the garage as a kid..it was always in bits and lots of times pushing him up the road ha.
It broke his heart in the end and sold it for £500 back in 96-98..if only he knew..only 2 stroke he has now is a little 100.
Nevertheless it rubbed off me and I've 2 lcs now and a dt..and I'm 25..I love 2strokes...

Yup I'm 26 and I built this having been brought up on cars bikes anything with an engine, especially karting from a young age and was desperate to have another stroker in my life




We're not all bad

[risolc]

Looks bad to me!!!!
😜😜😜😜😜
Love it.

[Delbert]

We're not all bad [/quote]

Indeed not ,my 19 year old nephew has a ts 50 and loves the old retro cars . He currently drives a very clean old school micra ( with all the bling of course )

[beardy]

back in march i bought my son a kh100 for his 17th birthday. come july he buys himself a yzf125r and i`m sure it was because of peer pressure by his car owning mates. we went for a long ride the other week round the lanes. me on the kh and him on his r1 rep and we swapped bikes while out. i think he`s getting the idea about 2 strokes now coz he could`nt stop smiling after getting back on the kh.
another thing i`ve noticed is his car owning mates are now getting interested in bikes which is good for the future.

[lcyoungboy]

Yazza54..Noway..and I thought you were an oul lad ..I followed your rebuild thread..alot of work and innovation..savage bike that is👍
Dave

[mouse]

Agree with you all on here. It does concern me slightly when people working in bikes shops have never heard of our bikes.

On the flip side, I feel really privileged and proud to be riding such bikes.
It gives me a huge sense of joy and i have an enormous passion in the bikes i own and ride.
I think we are really lucky to know about and experience these bikes whenever we choose

Mouse

[doohanno1]

Sept 5, 2016 21:42:27 GMT 1 alistair64 said:

Hi All
Just checked into a Travelodge near Eastbourne on my way down to France for a short break.
The guy at reception rides an R6, a lovely 2002 example, so we chatted for some time.
Of course I told him about reaching the final stages of a bike restoration and he asked what bike it was.
The guy was probably in his late twenties at a guess, but when I announce 'oh, it's probably before your time and you won't know it', I still hoped he would.
'It's an RD350 Powervalve', says I, but the blank expression said it all.
'What cc is it?' says he.
'It's a 350 2-stroke. It wouldn't be allowed these days due to emission laws' says I. 'But I grew up on these sort of bikes. They come from a time when we had to do maintenance on bikes ourselves, because they weren't as reliable as they are now.' 
I got the normal response from his generation that he wouldn't have a clue even how to change a spark plug, which I told him I found a great shame.

The point of this post is that I still can't accept that younger bikers have never heard of our bikes. This is the second time it has happened with strangers in the space of a couple of weeks 
Does anyone else get disheartened by similar experiences?
The problem here is that although I'm 52 I still feel 25 years younger, and experiences like this don't help!

I"d say when you got to France they heard about Bruno Parent..!!!

[yazza54]

Sept 7, 2016 16:44:20 GMT 1 lcyoungboy said:

Yazza54..Noway..and I thought you were an oul lad ..I followed your rebuild thread..alot of work and innovation..savage bike that is👍
Dave

Cheers dude looks like you've done a great job of the LC too

[bezzer]

Sept 5, 2016 21:42:27 GMT 1 alistair64 said:

Hi All
Just checked into a Travelodge near Eastbourne on my way down to France for a short break.
The guy at reception rides an R6, a lovely 2002 example, so we chatted for some time.
Of course I told him about reaching the final stages of a bike restoration and he asked what bike it was.
The guy was probably in his late twenties at a guess, but when I announce 'oh, it's probably before your time and you won't know it', I still hoped he would.
'It's an RD350 Powervalve', says I, but the blank expression said it all.
'What cc is it?' says he.
'It's a 350 2-stroke. It wouldn't be allowed these days due to emission laws' says I. 'But I grew up on these sort of bikes. They come from a time when we had to do maintenance on bikes ourselves, because they weren't as reliable as they are now.' 
I got the normal response from his generation that he wouldn't have a clue even how to change a spark plug, which I told him I found a great shame.

The point of this post is that I still can't accept that younger bikers have never heard of our bikes. This is the second time it has happened with strangers in the space of a couple of weeks 
Does anyone else get disheartened by similar experiences?
The problem here is that although I'm 52 I still feel 25 years younger, and experiences like this don't help!

Hi Al,
Couldn't agree with your post more 😔. We had bikes as daily transport "in the day" and as a consequence, had to learn to maintain and repair them.

It is the accepted practice that on turning 17 now, your offspring expect a car for their birthday, usually (if it's a daughter) it'll be a mini with a personalised registration, and also expect a university education as a birthright. There was a glimmer of hope last year when we had a new apprentice start, he had a KTM motocrosser and in his own words was "mad keen" on bikes, he told us about his expoits riding in enduro's with his father etc, and all was well until he asked me how to adjust the chain on his mates CG125 😟.

As a 15 year old I bought a KH250 as a frame, pair of wheels and 3 tea chests full of parts. I put it back together without the aid of a manual, and it may not have looked very pretty, but it ran well enough, and I sold it making enough to buy my first LC, a white/blue 350, (also in bits!).

The difference between then and now is necessity, modernist kids don't NEED a bike or NEED to know how they work, our apprentices are more interested in facebook, twitter or online gambling, than finding out what makes things go and stop I'm afraid. It's a very sad state of affairs.

[steve h]

Reading this thread has reminded me of an overheard conversation between a boy and his father at a steam fair. It went like this....
Father and son stood next to traction engine....."Dad......what are these black stones?"
Dads reply "I don't know son"

I shit you not
A massive increase in grey matter not being exercised......You can excuse the kid...but the adult?
Thankfully not all the younger generation are of this ilk!!! as is evident above

[veg]

My first road bike was 2x fs1e bought for £5 for both ( I know) dad who was a biker (t140) got me to strip and rebuild 1 good one out of the 2 before I could get on the road. Stood me in good stead through the years. I learnt about engines about electrics paintwork. Now 'unfortunately' what I earn negates the benefit of working on most things but I do intend on completing the majority of my rebuild.

[alistair64]

Sept 9, 2016 10:51:10 GMT 1 bezzer said:

Sept 5, 2016 21:42:27 GMT 1 alistair64 said:

Hi All
Just checked into a Travelodge near Eastbourne on my way down to France for a short break.
The guy at reception rides an R6, a lovely 2002 example, so we chatted for some time.
Of course I told him about reaching the final stages of a bike restoration and he asked what bike it was.
The guy was probably in his late twenties at a guess, but when I announce 'oh, it's probably before your time and you won't know it', I still hoped he would.
'It's an RD350 Powervalve', says I, but the blank expression said it all.
'What cc is it?' says he.
'It's a 350 2-stroke. It wouldn't be allowed these days due to emission laws' says I. 'But I grew up on these sort of bikes. They come from a time when we had to do maintenance on bikes ourselves, because they weren't as reliable as they are now.' 
I got the normal response from his generation that he wouldn't have a clue even how to change a spark plug, which I told him I found a great shame.

The point of this post is that I still can't accept that younger bikers have never heard of our bikes. This is the second time it has happened with strangers in the space of a couple of weeks 
Does anyone else get disheartened by similar experiences?
The problem here is that although I'm 52 I still feel 25 years younger, and experiences like this don't help!

Hi Al,
Couldn't agree with your post more 😔. We had bikes as daily transport "in the day" and as a consequence, had to learn to maintain and repair them.

It is the accepted practice that on turning 17 now, your offspring expect a car for their birthday, usually (if it's a daughter) it'll be a mini with a personalised registration, and also expect a university education as a birthright. There was a glimmer of hope last year when we had a new apprentice start, he had a KTM motocrosser and in his own words was "mad keen" on bikes, he told us about his expoits riding in enduro's with his father etc, and all was well until he asked me how to adjust the chain on his mates CG125 😟.

As a 15 year old I bought a KH250 as a frame, pair of wheels and 3 tea chests full of parts. I put it back together without the aid of a manual, and it may not have looked very pretty, but it ran well enough, and I sold it making enough to buy my first LC, a white/blue 350, (also in bits!).

The difference between then and now is necessity, modernist kids don't NEED a bike or NEED to know how they work, our apprentices are more interested in facebook, twitter or online gambling, than finding out what makes things go and stop I'm afraid. It's a very sad state of affairs.

Some great posts here, so thanks for all the replies. Didn't quite expect so many! Btw, by no means was my initial post meant to be having a pop at the younger generation in general, because obviously there will be exceptions to the rule. It was more a comment on how things are now, compared to how they were when most of us were growing up.

I'm quoting Bezzer's post however, as it perfectly sums up how it was back in our younger days compared to now. Everything seems to be handed out on a plate nowadays, rather than having to put in some effort yourself and taking responsibility.
For example, I'm often in disbelief as to how/why so many kids 30 years younger than me are driving newer cars after I've worked all my life to get to where I am.
I guess we live in a spoilt society today, whereas back then I didn't have my parents willing to pick up the pieces for every obstacle that came my way.

Having said all this, I wouldn't swap places due to the experience it gave me, but I agree that it is a pretty sad state of affairs.

[veg]

It's called no mortgage and financing yourself to the hilt just to say look at me. Lots of jobs also come with company cars hence the rise in new ref cars

[wolfboy1]

loving that bike yaz